title: Kinetics of levulinic acid and furfural production from Miscanthus × giganteus.
abstract: This study investigated the kinetics of acid hydrolysis of the cellulose and hemicellulose in Miscanthus to produce levulinic acid and furfural under mild temperature and high acid concentration. Experiments were carried out in an 8L-batch reactor with 9%-wt. biomass loading, acid concentrations between 0.10 and 0.53 M H2SO4, and at temperatures between 150 and 200°C. The concentrations of xylose, glucose, furfural, 5-hydroxymethylfurfural and levulinic acid were used in two mechanistic kinetic models for the prediction of the performance of ideal continuous reactors for the optimisation of levulinic acid and the concurrent production of furfural. A two-stage arrangement was found to maximise furfural in the first reactor (PFR - 185°C, 0.5M H2SO4, 27.3%-mol). A second stage leads to levulinic acid yields between 58% and 72%-mol at temperatures between 160 and 200°C.
authors.affiliation: Carbolea Research Group, Department of Chemical and Environmental Sciences, University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Dussan
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Girisuta
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Haverty
authors.forename: J J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Leahy
authors.forename: M H B
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Hayes
mesh_terms: D018533:Biomass; D019149:Bioreactors; D003433:Crosses, Genetic; D005662:Furaldehyde / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000378:metabolism*; D005947:Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D006868:Hydrolysis; D007700:Kinetics; D007982:Levulinic Acids / Q000378:metabolism*; D006109:Poaceae / Q000378:metabolism*; D011134:Polysaccharides / Q000378:metabolism; D014990:Xylans / Q000378:metabolism; D014994:Xylose / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D007982:Levulinic Acids; D011134:Polysaccharides; D014990:Xylans; C008046:5-hydroxymethylfurfural; C007916:hemicellulose; D014994:Xylose; D005662:Furaldehyde; D005947:Glucose; C032246:levulinic acid
keywords: Acid hydrolysis; Furfural; Kinetic modelling; Levulinic acid; Miscanthus